E O L O G I C T I M E

G
SCALE
HADEAN EON

(4.6 BILLION YEARS AGO).

FORMATION OF EARTH
The Hadean Eon is often characterized
by extreme volcanism as Earth
continued to cool. Large amounts of
water would have been in the material
which formed the Earth.

(4–2.5 BILLION YEARS AGO)

DEVELOPMENT OF EARTH'S
ARCHEAN EON

EARLY ATMOSPHERE
The Earth during the
Archean was mostly a
water world: there was
continental crust, but much
of it was under an ocean
deeper than today's
oceans.
PROTEROZOIC EON

(2.5 BILLION YEARS AGO)

THE EVOLUTION OF
EUKARYOTIC ORGANISMS
Significant events from the
Proterozoic eon are the Great
Oxygen Event, Snowball Earth,
formation of the supercontinent
Rodinia, and the evolution of
eukaryotic cells and of
multicellular organisms.
 E O L O G I C T I M E
G
SCALE
PALEOZOIC ERA
(541-252 MILLION YEARS AGO)
E O N

CARBONIFEROUS PERIOD
DEVONIAN PERIOD
SILURIAN PERIOD
ORDOVICIAN PERIOD
CAMBRIAN PERIOD
This era is known as the ‘ancient life’, since just before
this age began, the earliest animals on Earth made their
P H A N E R O Z O I C

appearance. Fish varied widely, and marine life was plenty.

MESOZOIC ERA
(252-66 MILLION YEARS AGO)

CRETACEOUS PERIOD
JURASSIC PERIOD
TRIASSIC PERIOD
This era is known as the
“Age of Reptiles”, the time
of Dinosaurs, and also the
‘middle life.’

CENOZOIC ERA
(66 MILLION YEARS AGO UNTIL TODAY)

QUARTERNARY PERIOD
NEOGENE PERIOD
PALEOGENE PERIOD

This era is known as the

“Age of Mammals” and
also the ‘recent life.’